Sig Christenson is a veteran military reporter who has made nine trips to the war zone. He writes regularly for Hearst about service members, veterans and heroes, among other topics. He is also the co-founder and former president of Military Reporters and Editors, founded in 2002.

Camp Swift

08/13/2014

BASTROP — Gov. Rick Perry met with Texas Army National Guard soldiers here Wednesday as they prepared to deploy to the Rio Grande Valley for a border-security mission, telling them they will stand between “narco-terrorists” and law-abiding Americans.

The troops at Camp Swift, a Texas Guard training facility outside of Bastrop, trained on optical devices they will use while on the border as dozens of news organizations descended on the facility for a media day.

“You are now the tip of the spear in protecting Americans from these cartels and gangs,” said Perry. “As they are able to get past you, they could be headed to any city, any neighborhood in this country and they're spreading their tentacles of crime and fear.”